Chaos in Belgium: Pro-Palestine activists sabotage military vehicles destined for Ukraine
Pro-Palestinian activists targeted Belgian defense companies, including OIP in Tournai, causing significant damage to military equipment intended for Ukraine. The activists, numbering around 100, broke into OIP, vandalizing property and delaying crucial deliveries. OIP's CEO stated that the company hasn't supplied Israel with weapons in over 20 years and condemned the actions as vandalism.
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Protesters came prepared and caused damage
OIP's role and reaction to the attack
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In Tournai, a city in Belgium, some pro-Palestinian activists broke into a defense company called OIP and damaged military equipment that was supposed to go to Ukraine. They also targeted two Belgian companies — OIP in Tournai and Syensqo in Haren — because they accused these companies of helping Israel's military in Gaza, as per reports.Although many protests were about Israel, the biggest damage happened in Tournai, where the equipment for Ukraine was seriously damaged. On June 23, around 100 masked activists entered the OIP company grounds. OIP is the Belgian branch of the Israeli weapons company Elbit Systems, according to the report by The New Voice Of Ukraine.The CEO of OIP, Freddy Versluys, said the protesters came prepared with angle grinders and hammers. The group started by smashing desks and computers, then they heavily damaged several military vehicles.Because of this damage, OIP will now delay the delivery of important equipment to Ukraine by at least one month. The financial damage is nearly 1 million euros, and the company has already filed an official complaint. Versluys also noticed that about 80% of the protesters were women, which can be clearly seen in the video by how they behaved and used the hammers, as stated by The New Voice Of Ukraine report.OIP mainly works on repairing, maintaining, and upgrading military equipment. Since Russia's invasion of Ukraine, OIP has supplied around 260 armored vehicles to the Ukrainian army. The CEO said that OIP hasn't made any weapons or defense tools for Israel in more than 20 years. He also said the company isn't allowed to send any equipment to Israel. He called the protesters vandals who used the Palestinian cause as an excuse to commit vandalism.On June 20, a group of pro-Palestinian activists entered a Royal Air Force base in the UK. They sprayed red paint on two military planes and said they broke other equipment and made the planes stop working, according to The New Voice of Ukraine.Activists broke into two Belgian defense companies and damaged military equipment, especially at OIP in Tournai.OIP in Tournai and Syensqo in Haren were the two companies attacked.
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